"A family located in North London is looking for an remarkable and skilled educator to assist their smallest child on his early path to growing into an British gentleman."
When reading this advertisement, you might naturally skip the wording "first-steps" as simple a turn of phrase.
But, it might be the crucial part of this distinctive position posting, as it attempts to recruit a teacher for a infant.
Many of submissions have now been submitted since the anonymous family published their call for the highly paid tutor, who has to be "a uniquely qualified person".
In recent few weeks, the advert has gained interest across the media, with numerous asking why?
Innovative Idea
A tutoring expert, head and founder of Tutors International, which is helping the family in their search, said that in spite of first scepticism, he found the concept "visionary", and "progressive".
When he met the family, he noted they understood the atypical character of their request, and how immature their son is.
Nevertheless, they stated that they "preferred not to postpone any longer" to get a tutor, as they had waited until their older child was five, and by that age "cultural influence had by then set in".
What precisely does the family indicate by "cultural predisposition"?
It's "everything", the expert replied. "The manner you eat, the manner you speak".
He said the firstborn had adopted "extremely delicate, non-verbal cues" from the family, and had adopted their cultural ways. The family informed the consultant they did not want history to recur with their new baby.
The plan: To engage a UK tutor, who needs to speak with standard English accent, to guide the baby right from the beginning.
Natural Absorption
"Much of the education at the start here is somewhat acquired indirectly," said the expert.
It's through this natural absorption that the family are expecting the child will adopt the English characteristics they wish to cultivate.
Adam said the tutor had to be somebody who studied at "the appropriate educational institutions – similar types of schools as the family hope to send their son to".
"The tutor simply needs to be the suitable individual, they'll be carrying out things they aren't even aware they're doing, simply by nature," he added.
Money No Object
The family told the expert the successful candidate should ideally also have understanding of or enthusiasm in horse riding, alpine skiing, artistic pursuits and music so as to influence the child in a broad spectrum of hobbies.
More than that though, he explained the family wanted the tutor to register the child on a selection of courses so the child would be "horseback riding and picking up an tool by the time they are around three years old".
In the family's minds, guiding their son develop into a "British gentleman" will bring about accomplishment and create opportunities.
"Taking into account the pros and cons of that, because it's certainly a class statement," he comments.
However, in spite of all this tutelage in "Britishness", would the child pick up alleged cultural influence from the international family he resides with in any case?
"Certainly", answered the CEO. "The parents understand this may not work, but they've simply adopted the view of, 'let's give it a go and we should start as quickly as we can', because the cost of it is irrelevant," he said.
Impractical
There are some in the tutoring industry who express similar reservations.
Another CEO, head and founder of Blue Education, who also offer private tutors, wrote that "the journey of adopting dual cultures, or actually, becoming oneself, is something that must be experienced personally, not designed."
Peter noted that he had emigrated from China to the United Kingdom at the time of childhood, and had been brought up knowing and living two backgrounds. He continued to study at the University of Cambridge.
"The concept that an individual can act as a representation of UK identity, someone who can somehow transfer the characteristics of a English gentleman onto a 12-month-old child, appears naive and unfeasible," he commented.
"In my experience, employing a quintessentially UK tutor from early childhood will will not necessarily produce the goal they hope for.
"I wasn't provided with that kind of mentor, and yet I have been lucky enough to enjoy several of the experiences they desire for their son."
He stated: "The reality is, cultural identity should not be imposed from the outside; it must be selected, and it must be internally driven."
Purchasing UK Culture
Naturally, Britishness is something the expert believes can be instructed – and commercialized.
"I believe the situation that the global community views us in this regard is something that we should be cherishing|valuing|appreciating
